Steve King Predicts Roy Moore Could “Shift Destiny of America” by Leading to End of Roe v. Wade

A month ago, Congressman Steve King dismissed the multiple allegations against notorious theocrat and Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore of improper relations, including sexual assault, that he had in his early 30s with teenage girls. Linking to a Breitbart article, King tweeted then Moore was being pressured to end his campaign by GOP senators “who won’t or can’t help move Trump agenda.”

In recent days, in increasingly dramatic fashion, King has continued to support Moore on Twitter. On Nov. 28, King linked to a Politico magazine article in which Moore’s Democratic opponent, civil rights attorney Doug Jones, said he was a “firm believer that a woman should have the freedom to choose what happens to her body,” supported a woman’s right to “the abortion that they might need,” and, asked if he would support a 20-week abortion ban, was “not in favor of anything that would infringe on a woman’s right to choose.”

King called Jones’ support for abortion rights “FAR worse than a 38 year-old allegation,” referring to the story of a woman published early last month in the Washington Post who described how Moore, as a 32-year-old assistant district attorney, chatted her up outside the courthouse when she was just 14 years old. Just a few days later, according to the woman, Moore drove her to his home, where he kissed her and molested her after stripping her to her underwear.

This contemporary SELF indictment by Doug Jones is far, FAR worse than a 38 year-old allegation. Will American babies have to die if the #RoyMoore issue is not understood from the perspective of the unborn? https://t.co/8r2UXx5Dso

On Nov. 29, King followed up with another tweet that attacked Planned Parenthood for being the “#1 abortion mill in America.” His tweet included a photo of a computer monitor with six tabs opened to stories about Moore. They included five from the Post, including the newspaper’s initial report on the child molestation accusation as well as a timeline with stories from seven other women, all but one of whom were teens when Moore pursued relationships with them. (Local residents have said that Moore’s interest in teenage girls was “common knowledge” and “not a big secret.”)

Isn’t it comforting to know that Planned Parenthood, the #1 abortion mill in America, takes ALL religious holidays & Sundays off-but makes up for it by working a all day on Saturdays. pic.twitter.com/VykylDx3jg

But on Monday, King refocused on Moore, linking to a column written by the paleoconservative Pat Buchanan and commenting that Moore’s election could “shift Destiny of America” by leading to the end of Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1971 Supreme Court case that affirmed a woman’s right to an abortion. “Why would Christian conservatives in good conscience go to the polls Dec. 12 and vote for Judge Roy Moore, despite the charges of sexual misconduct with teenagers leveled against him?” Buchanan wrote. “Answer: That Alabama Senate race could determine whether Roe v. Wade is overturned. The lives of millions of unborn may be the stakes.”

King’s continued support for Moore, then, appears to echo arguments made by Buchanan and Alabama Republican leaders before him that it’s more important to elect a man supportive of their political agenda than to get distracted by which or how many girls he may have dated or molested four decades ago.

Gavin Aronsen is an editor and reporter for and founding member of the Iowa Informer. He previously worked as a city reporter for the Ames Tribune, research assistant to investigative journalist Wayne Barrett at the Village Voice, and in various roles at Mother Jones, where his work contributed to a National Magazine Award nomination for the magazine's digital media coverage of the Occupy Wall Street movement. Email: garonsen [at] iowainformer [dot] com.